Meet Susan

Imagine saying “I got my life back” after working together – just like a client who also had significant improvements in overall energy, mental clarity and digestive issues – in the first month alone!

This is what I do.

The first thing I tell people I work with is that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

There is a way out of the fatigue, the frustration, and the sense of feeling overwhelmed—not knowing where or how to begin. You are not stuck in quicksand with no way out, even if it feels that way sometimes.

I know this because I was once in your same boat, wildly trying to bail my way out with a thimble, instead of the giant bucket of knowledge and support I really needed.

Once I got that proverbial bucket, my health changed, my energy levels changed, my life changed. My goal is to help empower you to make the right choices for yourself so that you can have the best life you can, because you deserve it!

The journey so far…

My journey began long before I graduated from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, my health coach school, in 2016. It began even before I knew that health coaches existed. It started many years ago, just before 2006 when I was working a high-stress job in law enforcement (my career for over fourteen years, retiring in May 2016), and being responsible for my elderly father, who at the time was suffering from debilitating Alzheimer’s and diabetes.

I was emotionally drained, physically exhausted, and just completely out of balance. I had chronic fatigue, and did not even want to get out of bed. But I did. I went to work, and I did Crossfit five to six days a week as a stress relief, but I was actually doing more damage to myself. I ate what I believed to be “healthy foods,” but they were actually draining me and making me more exhausted, while causing my body more harm than good.

It was in early 2007 that I woke up from a dead sleep with my heart rate so fast I thought I was having a heart attack. Off to the ER! Labs were all over the place as well. That was it. It was the beginning of a few years of looking for answers. I saw every type of specialist you can imagine, and no one had answers.

I was given medication after medication and told that “You’ll be fine.” No one addressed what I was eating, looked for root causes, or addressed the incredible amount of stress I was under.

That summer I met a holistic nutritionist at a local farmer’s market. Yes, as crazy as that sounds it’s the random woman at the farmer’s market that helped change my life. She showed me that nutrition was a key in the body’s healing. I found I was eating many foods to which I had sensitivities or even allergies, of which I’d been previously unaware.

My gut was a wreck! I saw how what you eat greatly affects your quality of life, can significantly decrease or eliminate inflammation, and heal your gut.

I began to research and study, which lead to changing how I ate and lived as a whole, and I experienced amazing changes. I began working with naturopathic physicians, who wanted to find the root cause of my issues, and we eventually found the right approach for me that not only gave me my energy, my mind, and my body back.

It gave me my life back!

It was not until February 2017 that I was finally diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease, Babesia, and Bartonella. I knew my body well enough and knew I was not “right.” I truly believe that it is because of my diet and lifestyle that we were able to narrow down the cause, and why it would go into remission for a while with few symptoms. I want to show people that you can overcome or handle anything when your mind, body and soul are functioning as one.

My passions are Crossfit, hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing and running 5k and obstacle races. And, I can do so without the complete body shut down I would previously experience. I also journal and practice meditation daily, and listen to my body. The whole time I had been finding the way to holistically heal myself (and by “holistically,” I mean “as a whole,”) I had been wishing there was someone there to guide me through this process. Provide education and support, as physicians only have so much time and don’t typically deal with nutrition.

That is why I am where I am today! I want to empower you with the knowledge you need to take steps in the right direction so that you can feel amazing.

So that you can have a fulfilling life and be your TRUE SELF! The transformation I see in my clients, inside and out, is so inspiring and rewarding that I know that all I went through was to lead me down this path. Your life is worth making it great. It’s worth everything. We are here to live life, not merely exist. Start living…let’s do this together! You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain.

To quote Oscar Wilde, “To live is the rarest thing there is. Most of us just exist.” Part of me truly living and enjoying my life to the fullest is sharing my knowledge and experience, and working with you to enhance your quality of life. Together we can make this journey truly wonderful!

You are not stuck in quicksand with no way out, even if it feels that way sometimes. I know this because I was once in your same boat, wildly trying to bail my way out with a thimble, instead of the giant bucket of knowledge I really needed.

Certifications

“Following a traumatic accident in which I lost the love of my life, I gained 50 pounds in the blink of an eye. I had generally been eating well prior to this event and completely lost any semblance of sanity related to my general health and wellness. Susan agreed to take me on as a client and painstakingly suffered through the first six months in which I got my head right. She was tenacious without judgement and compassionate while urging me in the right direction. Had it not been for the accountability of biweekly meetings and how attentive she is, I’m sure I’d have gained another 50 instead of maintaining. I happily signed up for a second period with Susan. I look forward to the learning and more visible results this time around. So thankful for Susan’s caring support during the single most awful time of my life. She got me back to caring about my health and wellness so I can be here for my daughter. That is worth everything. Susan gets my highest recommendation. She gets it.”

– Staci

Michelle's Story

“My top three goals for the 6-month program were feeling better, losing weight, and learning how and what foods work together to help make me healthy and feel good. I would describe Susan as kind, knowledgeable, energized, organized, sincere, helpful and detailed. A wonderful person inside and out. You’re the best!! The biggest overall change I have noticed has been my attitude, emotions, strength and weight. I am becoming a different person—in a good way. My emotions aren’t all over the place, which helps me have a better attitude. And I believe that has helped the weight come off. This is the best thing I have ever done for myself. It’s amazing to be able to notice how different foods can affect you so quickly after you start the program. And it’s really not a program, it is a lifestyle change that you won’t ever want to change again because this works!